Case Number 24519

SAFE (2011) (BLU-RAY)

The Charge

She has the code. He is the key.

Opening Statement

Jason Statham is a machine. I don't really mean his well-muscled physique
(which just about every filmmaker exploits with at least one shot of his
open-shirted glory), but instead the fact that he's ridiculously consistent
throughout his career. Though always capable of adopting different characters
(no one would mistake his turn in Snatch with his characters in
Crank or The Expendables), he always brings a masculine but not
macho sensibility, a willingness to do violent stunts, and the ability to look
threatening against any attacker. For some, that might leave the string of
action flicks starring Statham a little stale: audiences know what to expect and
they get it with little complaint. For me, though, a film like Safe
recalls the glory days of 1980s action cinema, when not every Stallone or Arnold
flick was a classic, but at least they were making films that offered
popcorn-style entertainment. Safe (Blu-ray) won't win Statham any new
fans, but it does give him a substantial role in a better-than-average
thriller.

Facts of the Case

Luke Wright (Jason Statham) is a B-circuit MMA fighter who lets himself get
pounded on to atone for his sins. When he accidently knocks an opponent down
with the first punch, he runs afoul of the Russian mobsters who paid him to take
a dive in the second. They kill his wife, but offer him a second chance: if he
goes on the run and never talks to anyone, he can live. The second he forms an
attachment to someone, that person will die. Meanwhile, a New York City gangster
representing Chinese interests employs a little girl (Catherine Chan) from the
mainland who has a mind like a computer to remember numbers like profits and
losses (to not leave a paper trail). One day, she's given a number to memorize,
but on the way to getting another number, she's kidnapped by the Russian. Luke
witnesses the Russian's kidnapping attempts and helps her escape. Now he has to
keep her safe.

The Evidence

I have to say, if you advertised this film as "a thriller from the
director who brought you Uptown Girls and Remember the
Titans," I don't think you'd have a full audience on the first day.
Writer/director Boaz Yakin has been occupying the margins for Hollywood for over
a decade since his debut, Fresh, and has mostly worked on big-budget
studio fare like Remember the Titans or Prince of Persia: The Sands of
Time (which he helped script). Safe though, establishes his action
credentials beyond a doubt.

The first thing that stands out in Safe is the tight screenplay. Most
films of this type (protect the girl!) would have the hero meeting his charge
within the first five or ten minutes. Not so with Safe -- by exploring
the backstory of each character, he effectively puts off their meeting until the
30-minute mark. This helps to build tension, but more importantly gives Yokin a
larger canvass to work with. He can tackle gangland politics, police/political
corruption, the aftermath of 9/11, and a killer caper all in a single 95-minute
film without anything feeling forced.

The other thing that really stands out is the violence in this film. I'm a
jaded viewer of action flicks and enjoy the major and minor revolutions that
occur as new directors and stars try to bring something new to the table.
Safe doesn't revolutionize action cinema by any stretch, but it does
bring a freshness to the violence that is often lacking in by-the-numbers
action. Part of the freshness comes from the fact that one of the people put in
danger is a little girl, one who is a well-developed character (at least by
action standards). So, when the bullets and punches start flying around her, the
audience is primed to feel those impacts more forcefully. Director Yakin also
balances well between the more slowed-down "bullet ballet" style and
the visceral impact of flicks like Crank. He doesn't go strictly for one
or the other, so that some scenes are nothing like real-world fights, while
others brutal and practical.

Safe (Blu-ray) supports the wonderful action scenes. The 2.35:1/1080p
AVC-encoded transfer is a thing of beauty. Colors are well-saturated, detail is
strong throughout, and black levels are consistent and deep. Even the lower
budget of the CGI isn't treated too poorly. It's not perfect -- black levels
could be a shade more detailed, for instance -- but it's a strong, watchable
presentation. The DTS-HD 7.1 Master Audio track is equally good. Dialogue is
always clear and well-balanced. The action sequences have a lot of boom to them
and make good use of the soundscape.

Extras kick off with a commentary featuring Yakin, who talks at great length
about the project and how its various pieces came together. He's obviously proud
of his baby, and that enjoyment is infectious as well as informative. There are
also three featurettes that cover the film's production, spending a lot of time
on the stunts and action, interviewing Yakin, Statham, and others involved in
the project.

The Rebuttal Witnesses

Of course no matter how beautiful Safe (Blu-ray) is, there are those
who don't like Statham. That's fine, and there's nothing in this film that's
going to change their mind. To be fair to the haters, his accent in this flick
is a bit variable. Sometimes it sounds okay, like British-lite or a kind of
indeterminate non-accent. Sometimes, though, there seems to have been some
overdubbing (since usually we can't see his mouth in these scenes), and here the
accent gets laid on thick. It's too American. It doesn't ruin the movie by any
stretch, but with the clarity of this DTS-HD soundtrack, it's obvious in a few
places.

Closing Statement

It's easy to see where a lot of the plot in Safe comes from, if you
know action flicks from the past couple of decades. However, don't let an
unoriginal premise keep you from a solid action flick with above-average
storytelling, pacing, and fight scenes. Safe (Blu-ray) does the film's
audiovisual presentation justice, and the extras are sure to please fans.
Definitely worth a rental for action admirers, and a must-own for fans of
Statham.